A mega-fish farm project off Golfe-Juan, on the Côte d’Azur, strongly contested by fishermen and environmental defenders, has been definitively validated by the Alpes-Maritimes prefecture, a-t- we learned Thursday from the latter and the promoter.
After more than 24 months of instruction, Aquafrais Cannes “is enthusiastic to announce that its modernization project has been validated by the Alpes-Maritimes prefecture”, the company told AFP. A prefectural decree “environmental authorization” for the production of “sea bass or Mediterranean sea bass and sea bream”, consulted by AFP, was taken on July 24.
This decree was taken despite “an unfavorable opinion” issued in April following a public inquiry. Another organization, the Regional Mission of Environmental Authority (MRAE) had judged for its part in October that the project offered “all the guarantees for the environment, because it is far from the Posidonia meadows” and located in a perimeter “conducive » to aquaculture. This project, which aims to double the current local production, is considered “beneficial for an entire sector, and even more so for professionals on the Riviera and France who will benefit from a wider offer in the short circuit, and of superior quality, on a market dominated by more than 85% by Greek and Turkish imports”, added Aquafrais in a press release.
The family business, created 35 years ago and which already operates several farms on this part of the coast and produces 570 tonnes of fish per year, plans to increase its production to 1,200 tonnes by 2026. To do this, it will bring together three existing scattered concessions and will acquire a unique structure of 24,000 square meters off Vallauris-Golfe-Juan. Two dealerships in Cap d’Antibes and Théoule-sur-Mer will be closed.
The company, which achieves a turnover of approximately 5 million euros per year, plans to invest “several million euros, which will make it possible to increase the production of noble fish in France (gilthead sea bream and bass ), to create 20 jobs in addition to the 35 existing ones, in compliance with environmental standards”, according to its managing director Jérôme Hémar.
The project has sparked strong protests from professional fishermen and boaters who last February organized a parade of around a hundred boats between the ports of Golfe-Juan and Cannes, to denounce its impact on the environment. and the dangers it would represent for navigation. The professional fishermen of Golfe-Juan, who are half a dozen, were also up in arms, denouncing “industrial” aquaculture and deploring, according to them, the loss of a 12-hectare working area. A petition against the project had collected more than 2,500 signatures and received the support of some elected officials.
